Conn. jobless rate falls to 8.1 percent

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Connecticut's Department of Labor says the state unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent in January.

The department says the state added 4,700 jobs in January in sign of considerable improvement to the state's labor market.

The agency's research director says the data shows the state's job market is continuing on a modest but positive recovery path established in 2011.

The jobless rate had been reported at 8.6 percent for December, but officials say revisions to earlier estimates show that Connecticut is closer to the national pace of job recovery than was previously reported.

The national jobless rate is currently 7.9 percent.

Authorities say Connecticut's job gains were led by professional and business services and the leisure and hospitality industry.